Friday, January 16, 2009

Stromboli

Ingredients:

- 1 recipe Homemade Pizza Crust or 1 pound Frozen Bread Dough, thawed
- 1/2 pound Italian Sausage, casings removed and crumbled
- 1 cup Onions, sliced
- 1/2 cup Red Bell Peppers, sliced
- 1/2 cup Greed Bell Peppers, sliced
- 2 tablespoons Jalapenos, seeded and sliced
- 2 tablespoons Garlic, minced
- Dry Italian Herbs
- Crushed Red Pepper (optional)
- 1/2 pound Capicola ham, sliced
- 1/4 pound Salami, sliced
- 4 cups grated Italian Cheeses
- Egg wash (1 beaten egg w/ 1 tbsp water)
- Finely Grated Parmesan
- Fresh Ground Pepper & Kosher Salt

**I make a vegetarian version of this as well. Sub out the bell peppers and meats with sauteed mushrooms, sauteed onions, roasted eggplant, roasted red bell peppers, roasted zucchini/squash, and fresh basil. Also, brush fresh/store bought pesto onto your rolled out dough before layering the vegetables/cheese.

Recipe adapted from Foodnetwork.com

Directions:
- In a skillet, cook the sausage over medium-high until brown and fat is rendered.
- Remove sausage and drain on paper towels. Remove all but 1 tablespoon of rendered fat from the skillet.
- Add the sliced onions, bell peppers, jalapenos, and cook stirring until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and italian herbs, and crushed red pepper, and cook for another minute. Taste for seasonings, and add salt/pepper as needed.
- Roll out your dough on a lightly floured surface to a 10x15 inch rectangle.
- Sprinkle some dried italian herbs onto the dough.
- Spread half of the sausage/pepper mixture, horizontally, leaving at least a 1 inch border.
- Start layering your meats. Overlapping, layer half the capicola ham, salami, and cheese over the top.
- Using a pastry brush, brush the egg wash along the border of one long horizontal edge of the dough.
- Starting at the opposite long end without the egg wash, roll up the dough into a cylinder, being careful with the layered meat/cheeses as you roll. While rolling, pinch the edges to seal. Keep it seam side down and tuck the ends under.
- Place the rolled stromboli onto a prepared baking sheet. Cut diagonal slits into the top.
- Repeat with next stromboli if you have remaining dough.
- Brush the top of the stromboli with olive oil and egg wash. Sprinkle with dried herbs.
- Bake in a 375 degrees oven until golden brown and starting to crisp. This could take anywhere from 20-40 minutes. I have two ovens, and one went a lot faster than the other. So, keep an eye on it. Once browned, sprinkle the tops with grated parmesan cheese and return to oven to melt the cheese.
- Remove from oven and let stand at least 10 minutes. Slice at a diagonal into large chunks and serve.